Lamar University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 56, No. 27, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 6, 1980 Page: 6 of 8
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.UNIVERSITY PRESS February 6,1980*6
USL takes first SLC win.
Toney paces Cajuns to 75-64 victory over Redbirds
Photo by TERESA TRAHAN
^Redbird B.B. David looks for space around UTA’s Paul Renfro in
^Saturday’s SLC contest. Davis scored 23 points against the Mavericks.
By CYNTHIA SHIELDS
of the UP staff
LAFAYETTE, La.—The-
re was just one thing that
the rowdy fans in
Blackham Coliseum’ could
agree on Moncjpy night
when the University of
Southwestern Louisiana
rode LU 75-64 in Southland
Conference basketball ac-
tion.
Toney’s back.
Andrew Toney, a two-
time All-American and the
league’s leading scorer,
made his return ap-
pearance Monday before
an appreciative home
crowd. Back from a knee
injury, Toney was the
game’s high scorer with 26
points.
The 6-3 senior guard was
also credited with six
rebounds and five assists
for the evening.
Toney, who before his in-
jury ranked seventh in the
nation in scoring, scored
the game’s first points and
put USL in the lead. The fir-
st basket came on a 22-
footer and the second was
from 18 feet out.
The Cardinals didn’t get
on the scoreboard until
17:25 was left in the first
half. That’s when B.B.
Davis, Beaumont junior,
bucketed the first of two
free throw attempts.
Lamar was 9-1 with 15:30
to go before intermission
when Clarence Kea came
up with the Bird’s first field
goal. The Wilmington,
N.C., senior, already
credited with two fouls,
went to the inside to bring
the score to 9-3.
A Kea 10-footer from Ki
Lewis, Bay City senior,
brought Lamar within one
(21-20) with 9:41 left, and
Davis added a 15-footer to
give the Redbirds the lead
. for the first time in the
game (24-23).
Lamar led by three poin-
ts twice before in-
termission on goals by
Mike Olliver, Mt. Olive,
N.C., junior, and Alvin
Brooks, Houston junior.
Two quick shots from
Southwestern's Dion
Rainey the Ragin’ Cajuns
back in the driver seat, and
USL led 31-30 going into the
second half.
LU’s Davis led all
scorers at the half with 10
points while Rainey paced
the Cajuns with nine.
Rainey also led the first
half in rebounding with five
caroms.
Shooting 40.6 percent
from the field, Lamar had
seven turnovers in the first
half, compared to USL’s
48.4 shooting percentage
and nine turnovers.
After intermission, the
Cardinals pulled within one
point on three occassion.
The final time was with
7:44 left in the game when
Rainey came up with his
third personal to send
Brooks to the charity line.
With Lamar trailing 54-
51, the 5-10 point guard
made good on his two at-
tempts and brought the
score to 54-53.
The score was too close
for comfort for the Cajuns,
who had lost their first four
conference games, and
USL cameback with three
quick unanswered goals.
While three different
Cajuns came up with the
goals, USL’s Carl Jordan
assisted the trio. The 5-10
Southwestern guard came
up with 13 assists for the
evening and three steals.
Cajun Kevin Figaro stuf-
fed one in the final 10 secon-
ds of the game to move
USL ahead by 10. Figaro
was fouled by Lamar’s
Turk Williams, Jamaica,
N.Y., senior.
Making good at the
charity stripe, Figaro left
the final score 75-64 with
the Cajuns on top.
Finishing the game with
a 41.37 shooting percentage
from the floor, Lamar was
led in the scoring by Kea.
Before fouling out with 1:28
left in the game, the 6-7
post collected 18 points in-
cluding four-of-five from
the free throw line.
Also in double figures for
Lamar was Olliver with 14,
Brooks with 12, and Davis
with 11 tallies for the night.
Davis paced the Cards in
rebounding with seven
caroms while the league’s
leading rebounder Kea had
four. Lewis totaled six
caroms in the SLC contest.
Pacing the Cajuns with
26 points was Toney while
teammates Rainey and
Figaro grabbed 20 and 13
marks repectively.
Wayne Julien came off
the bench to lead USL in
rebounding with 10. Rainey
collected seven caroms for
the Cajuns.
The victory upped the
Cajuns’ league record to 1-4
and overall worksheet to
13-7.
Lamar fell to 15-9 on the
year, and with Saturday’s
118-81 thrashing of the
University of Texas at
Arlington in McDonald
Gym, the Redbirds moved
to 3-1 in conference.
Coach Billy Tubbs’ Birds
could do no wrong Satur-
day as Olliver, Kea and
Davis combined for a total
of 78 points in the league
victory.
Lamar’s leading scorer
Olliver connected for 28
points while Kea scored 27
and Davis 23.
Leading by as many as 14
points in the, first half,
Lamar shot a hot 55 per-
cent from the floor com-
pared to a chilly 29 percent
by the Movin’ Mavs.
Scoring in the double
figures for UTA was Paul
Renfro with 17 and Melvin
Polk and Andre Langford
had 17 apiece.
The Cardinals will con-
tinue their quest for their
third straight Southland
Conference crown when
they travel to Ruston
Saturday to meet the
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.
Louisiana Tech is 3-2 in
conference play, and fell to
Lamar 74-60 in the con-
ference opener for both
teams in January.
S’ll »
Photo by ROBERTGARRETT
Lamar’s Arthur Gray goes to put one In
Saturday night against Texas-Arlington in
McDonald Gym. The Cards defeated UTA,
118-81.
Sports
Fem netters/Golfers/Dockery
Netters aging with experience.
Birds, Owls meet in opener
CJ
pi
J)avid Broer (left) returns a forehand volley in recent action as Olav
f oss Abrahmsen looks on.
M
\Local players recruited
If or Card grid program
By LARRY GOING
of the UP staff
| Quarterback. Running back. Defensive
£>ack. Tight end. Lineman.
J Remember those positions when you at-
tend a football game next fall, because
£hey could be filled by some unknown
Ijiame. But by the end of the season, they
£ould become household words.
$ Coach Larry Kennan and his crew have
peen heavily recruiting high school
players from the Golden Triangle and
Surrounding area for the last two weeks,
iknd they have come away with some top-
-notch personnel that have been looked at
Irom a few of the more well-known schools
in the country.
S With the caliber.of the recruits thus far,
-boupled with Lamar's phenomenal about-
Jace success on the gridiron last fall, the
Cardinals could be a major candidate for
jbhe Southland Conference title for the next
four years.
“These are some good players we have
recruited,” Kennan said. “They are all
good. This is the best class of local athletes
ever recruited at Lamar.
“We’re very excited about these recent
signees. I think it’s a big credit to the high
school coaches in this area that they can
turn out players of the caliber of these.”
It’s hard to say now if any of these
recruits will start by the first game of the
season, but they could garner some
playing time eventually, according to Ken-
nan.
“A lot of them could play in their first
season,” Kennan said. “They could all
create some excitement.”
The li^t of recruits to date include four
running backs, Kenneth Green and Dozier
Lee, Hardin-Jefferson, Sour Lake; Norris
Roberts, Beaumont Kelly; and Louis Lan-
dry, Hebert.
The three linemen are Jimmie White,
(See LAMAR, page 7)
By MANUEL MORENO
of the UP staff
Like vintage wine, the Lamar men’s
tennis team should only get better with
aging.
After fielding one of the youngest crops
of netters in Lamar net history last season,
the 1980 Cardinals will have one year un-
der their belts to open Saturday with
against Rice University, Houston.
“It’s a tough team to be opening up
with,” said Ron Wesbrooks, head Lamar
tennis coach, “but at this point of the
season. I’m very optimistic about our
chances opening day.
“Rice is a much better team than last
year, but so are we,” Wesbrooks said. “At
this time last year, we were a very young
team. That one year of experience behind
us will help us greatly this spring.”
Despite the loss of team captain David
Eckley, the Cards will line up a Xerox copy
of last year’s sextet with one freshman
filling the departing senior’s occupancy.
Eckley’s shoes will be filled in by Jose
Llamas, Mexico City freshman, who was
the national junior champion in his native
country the last two years.
“Jose was 3-1 for us last fall in our
Lamar tournament,” Wesbrooks said,
“and he has the talent to be one of the
finest freshman recruits to join us here at
Lamar. Before the season is over with, he
will be an outstanding college player.”
Llamas was hampered by a tendonitis in
the foot injury the past two months and
just recently joined the Lamar squad for
practice, but Wesbrooks expects the Red-
bird rookie to be ready for the probable
No. 2 singles slot.
The Lamar netters will again be led by
their two-time All-Southland Conference
performer Tom Opsahl, Oslo, Norway,
junior, in the No. 1 position.
Opsahl carded a 16-12 mark last spring
in the premier singles action and was
recently invited to compete in the National
Intercollegiate Indoor Tennis Singles
Championships held in Houston two weeks
ago.
“I think he is playing more consistent
and more confident than ever before,”
Wesbrooks said. "His volleys have im-
proved immensely since last year and
have added to his success this past fall.”
Lamar boasts another AU-SLC figure in
the frame of Olav Foss Abrahmsen, Oslo,
Norway, sophomore, as he reached the
singles finals of the league meet last
spring for the runnerup honors. He also
netted a 16-9 record for 1979.
The Cardinals will send Joe Langner,
West Columbia sophomore, to their star-
ting lineup Saturday against Rice after
struggling to a 6-10 worksheet last spring
in his initial year. Langner will possibly
hold down the No. 5 slot.
In the sixth singles affair will be David
Broer, Johannesburg, South Africa,
sophomore. Broer ended his freshman
campaign with a 12-10 showing.
The return of Brace Helgeson, St. Cloud,
Minn., sophomore, to the Lamar courts
rounds out the Cardinal contingents to
meet the visiting Owls, as the Redbird net-
ter found himself in Florida at the Hop-
man’s Tennis Camp last semester.
“Brace lived tennis in thq fall,”
Wesbrooks said. “He concentrated ex-
clusively on tennis and played several
tournaments as well. Helgy is hitting the
ball better than I’ve ever seen, so it really
paid off for him.”
4%
Jill
Tom
Opsahl
Along with the starting six, the Cards in-
clude Roberto Arouesty, Mexico City
junior; Billy Hamilton, Lowell, Mass.,
sophomore; Willie Blackbird, Pasadena
freshman; Mike Conroy, Newton, N.J.,
freshman; and Chi Dang, Houston fresh-
man.
The 1979 Redbirds ended the Southland
Conference race runnerups behind South-
western Louisiana, Lafayette, but the
rebuilding year should be “a real plus for
us this spring,” according to Wesbrooks.
“With Olav showing signs of playing
where he finished off last year, and Joe,
David and Brace physically and mentally
improving each day, this team should beat
some people come conference time,”
Wesbrooks said.
“But for now, our main concern is
Rice,” he concluded.
Brace Helgeson (above) bends low for a forehand net shot and Jose
Llamas (below) prepares to hit a serve in recent practice session.
Photos by FERNANDO PRADO
•m
mm mvMsamm;■ ■.>**«
mm
®PS! m
Joe
Langner
i
w
f *
„ II
H
a
The Owls will counter with four veterans
and two nationally-ranked freshmen
recruits.
Rice won last year’s meeting in Houston,
6-3, as Abrahmsen claimed the No. 6
singles matchup and Lamar took the first
and third doubles meetings for the three
Cardinal victories.
First service is slated for 1:30 p.m.,
Saturday, at the Cardinal Courts. It will be
the first step in the aging process for the
Lamar netters to make 1980, a very good
year.
f
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Hale, Greg. Lamar University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 56, No. 27, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 6, 1980, newspaper, February 6, 1980; Beaumont, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth500205/m1/6/?q=Lamar+University: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Lamar University.